Girl Talk
by Hidden Relevance
Summary: Beware, ye of the Y-chromosome. This is NOT a fic for you! The ladies of the Gale family catch up on some needed girl talk. And yes, this really is what we talk about all day. Sister-centric with possible DG/Cain and Jeb/Az shipping.
1. Bigger?

**I have no excuse for these. Absolutely none. May the female bonding commence!**

"I'm telling you- a man must have invented these damn things!" DG grumbled, picking through the pile of what the court tailors deemed 'appropriate' undergarments for a lady of her station. They were corsets, every freaking one of them. Over the irate princess's head, her mother and sister shared an amused glance.

"It could be worse, Deeg." Azkadellia decided to leap, or at least kneel, into the fray at her side. She lifted a delicate pink number and considered it critically. "They could all be leather."

DG turned and brandished another at her. "You were saying?" The younger sister stared down at the thing in something like awe and horror. "The witch might have worn this one!" The black patent leather was festooned with buckles and straps, as if to rope in some poor woman's breasts and keep them from escaping.

Az studied it for a moment, frowning. "Actually, little sister, I think she did." She shuddered.

Their mother was startled into a laugh at that, and followed both her daughters to the floor, joining in on the rather disturbing study. "Oh, my Azkadellia, that is-" She dissolved into helpless laughter. "Frankly, I don't know what that is!"

"Neither do I!" Az answered. After a moment, the girls joined the Queen, giggling until they were breathless.

Still gasping, DG leaned back against the mountain of lingerie, glancing over at her sister. "Az… Az, I gotta ask you something. And there's really no polite way to ask it…"

Az wiped a few giddy tears from her eye. "Go ahead, Deeg. Frankly, it's likely a question the entire O.Z. is going to ask eventually." She crossed her hands in her lap, face sober. "I'd rather it was you to begin with."

DG blinked a few times, blue eyes wide. "I don't know that they will… no." She shook her head, as if to chase away a stray thought. "But what I wanted to ask is, weren't you… well" she gestured vaguely at her chest, "bigger before?"

Az's jaw dropped. Next to her, the queen simply buried her face in her hands, shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter. "I-" Az tried valiantly to regain her dignity. "I'm sure they weren't-" She brought her own hands up in front of her as she stared down at herself. "Oh hell, maybe they were." She grinned over at her hysterical sister. "Most of it wasn't mine though! I swear the corsets she had me in were pushing these up from my knees." She gave up and actually cupped her breasts in her hands, staring at them in bemusement. "She was rather… fond of them, actually."

That, of course, started off yet another round of laughter. The queen calmed herself first, and gazed over at her daughters in affection. "You both have no idea how good it is to hear your laughter." The girls quieted, reaching out to clasp hands with her and each other. "It tells me that we all shall heal."

Az leaned her head against her mother's shoulder. "I think maybe we already have."

**Of course, I don't own Tin Man. I'm just playing in the well over-due sandbox of these women. Strangely enough, I swear me and my girls have had most of the conversations I'll be presenting here. Be afraid.. be very afraid lol.**

**I will continue with Down the Road, this just begged to be written. **

**As always, reviews are love!**


	2. You've been looking?

**Disclaimer: no I don't own a damn thing. If I did, I'd be seeing quite a bit less of the pants in question. **

**Enjoy!**

Az came awake and groaned into her pillow at the sound of her bedroom door being opened. It was the middle of the night, and with the plethora of overprotective guards roaming Central City palace, there was only one person who would be entering her bedroom. Little DG needed some sisterly advice.

"Az… Are you awake?"

"I am now, Deeg." The elder princess lifted her head and with a careful flick of her fingers set the lamp at her bedside alight. Blinking at the sudden brightness (while the witch had slept with every light in the Tower on, Az simply couldn't), DG scampered across the room and onto the bed at her sister's side. "What's the matter, little sister?"

DG was more than a little flushed; frankly, she was blushing like an idiot. She kept her eyes downcast and worried at her lower lip with her teeth. "I just couldn't sleep." Az waited; her sister would work her way around to the real problem sooner or later. To Az's surprise, it was sooner. "I just keep having this bizarre dream. It's been every night for the past week now!"

Az swallowed a yawn and pulled herself up to a sitting position. "So, what was it about, Deeg?" She stared at her sister patiently.

DG opened and closed her mouth a few times as if unable to speak. Finally, she whispered, "The pants are stalking me."

"The pants are stalking you." She blinked. Whatever Az might have expected her sister to say, that was definitely not it. "Ah. _The_ pants, I take it?" She raised an eyebrow at her sister's nod. "Why exactly would that be a problem?"

DG threw up her hands. "Because it's JUST the pants!" she wailed. "He's not in them, and it's just creepy."

"He's not…" Az frowned at the mental picture of a pair of disembodied tan trousers chasing her little sister down the street. "That's definitely odd." DG spread her hands in an 'I told you so' gesture that Az was quickly becoming familiar with. Az cocked her head as another thought occurred to her. "Are they as well… ahem… filled out as they are when he's in them?" She giggled as her sister's face went even redder.

"I…they… he… You've been _looking_?!"

Az chuckled wickedly. "I'll take that as a yes." She grinned even wider as DG hid her face in her hands. "And just for the record, little sister, I do believe every woman with a pulse in this city has been looking, as well as more than a few of the men." She blinked. "Those pants even caught the witch's attention. And, as it was at the Northern Island, he can't have been at his best." DG's face shot up, eyes widened in confusion, so Az decided oh-so-helpfully to clarify. "Well it was cold, after all."

DG put a hand to her forehead. "The witch?"

Az shrugged tiredly. "He was armed and wearing leather- two of her favorite things. Are you really that surprised?"

DG shook her head. "Not really… no." She shuddered. "Disgusted, but not surprised." She rubbed her hand over her eyes as if to banish that image, and returned to the original subject. "Az… what am I going to do? I can't go back to sleep."

Az thought for a moment. "Well, I suppose that Dr. Heightmeyer would tell you that the dream stems from your conscious mind retreating from your unconscious carnal desires and blah blah blah."

DG snorted. "Oh, they're hardly unconscious, and I'm not the one retreating."

Az smirked in response. "I'm aware of that, little sister. Thus the 'blah blah blah.'" She brought her hands to her lap, the very picture of a demure young lady. DG grinned-that was never a good sign with her sister. Az continued, "I, however, have a slightly different perspective. Frankly, I think you're focusing on the wrong issue."

DG raised an eyebrow quizzically. "Oh really?"

"Really. The issue is not that the pants, themselves, are chasing you. It's that somewhere, in your dirty little mind, that man is wandering around without them." She smiled at her sister and moved to lie down again. "Sweet dreams little sister."

**Cookie to whoever recognizes Dr. Heightmeyer! Reviews as always are love.**


	3. Did he just?

**Ok, I am NOT a Jeb/Az shipper, but it somehow seemed to wiggle its way in here. No clues my dear!**

**BTW, it's still not mine. All I own is a dvd that is quickly being played within an inch of its life.**

Princess Dorothy Gale of the O.Z. restrained herself from shuffling her feet. It was, apparently, and completely aside from the fact that no one could possibly see her feet beneath her mass of skirts, not lady-like to fidget. From beside her and gently squeezing her hand, her sister leaned over and whispered, "Almost over, little sister." Az took care to keep her court smile firmly in place as she glanced around the ballroom. This 'celebratory' ball was dragging on far longer than either princess liked, and Az had a feeling that her sister might do something rash if she wasn't distracted soon. Now where was… ah.

"There's a Tin Man in full dress uniform a little to your left, Deeg." She smothered a giggle at the younger woman's attempt at innocence. "Go ahead and look, little sister. Glinda knows, I'm at the wrong angle to keep it at all subtle, and surely one of us should be enjoying the view."

DG squeezed her sister's hand in return, grateful that their mother had deemed it 'prudent' for the pair to display the light they shared between them, before allowing her blue eyes to drift over to the left. Her Tin Man stood with his back to her, broad shoulders square as he listened careful to his son speaking animatedly in his ear. She had to smile at that- she knew her handsome friend had been more than a little worried about his estranged son. It looked like they were finally getting comfortable with each other. With one ear on the conversation that she and Az were supposedly interested in, she let her gaze drop down. She swallowed a sigh and leaned into her sister's shoulder.

"Az, it's official. That seamstress needs a medal." The only issue she'd ever had with Cain's large duster had been the length in the back; the shorter jacket he currently wore with his dress uniform made it much easier to check out his ass. DG allowed herself to gaze out of the corner of her eye a little longer before a slight movement caught her attention. She glanced slightly up. Jeb Cain had shifted slightly, standing at an angle to his father. She'd started idly to wonder why when she noticed his eyes suddenly take a path slowly up and down in her direction. She blinked. Had he just… She smothered a groan as he did it again. This was not good.

"Az, we may have a small problem." Her sister kept smiling at the semi-circle of noble gentleman who'd gathered to schmooze at the princesses, but tilted her head in DG's direction.

"What kind of a problem, Deeg?" After her sister's last compliment to their seamstress, Az had assumed DG to be on cloud nine.

"Jeb Cain might, possibly, have sort of checked me out just now." The sisters looked at each other, eyes wide.

"Oh dear. That could get…"

"Awkward? Yeah, just a little." DG had a thought and took a slight step backwards. "He might have been looking at you though... I hope."

"You hope?" Az shook her head. "It doesn't seem likely. After all, there's nearly 10 years between him and me, Deeg. That's hardly appropriate!" Az choked on her words as she caught her sister's incredulous stare and chose, wisely, to backpedal. "Of course, younger men do have certain appeal." Despite herself, Az found herself glancing over since her sister had so kindly cleared her view. She caught a bright blue gaze and rather frantically tore her eyes away. "Well, hmm." She ignored her sister's raised brow. "You know, little sister, this could get complicated."

"As long as he's looking at you, we're good. It'll get a lot more complicated if it's me."

**Reviews are my favorite kind of bribery!!**


	4. So, horses?

**And the girl talk continues! Once again, not a great deal of plot to this little ditty- just some fun innuendo that I'm going to blame on my roommate. She recently promised me that she'd give me riding lessons, and while thanks to the 100+ degree weather we haven't gotten to go often, I'm absolutely loving it. And, I thought what the heck- I think these sisters might bond over similar lessons.**

**(BTW, still not mine. Just get used to it)**

DG glared at her current nemesis. "Why exactly do I have to do this again?" she grumped to her sister. Az rolled her eyes and bent to straighten out the long riding coat she wore to lay a bit more sedately over her destrier's back.

"Because, little sister, one cannot depend on a carriage being available at all times. Occasionally, we will have to travel about the country on horseback." She was more than a little bemused at her sister's reaction to this new lesson. Az had thought her rambunctious sister would be thrilled at the chance to leave the stuffy carriages behind.

"But a horse?" DG debated on kicking the beast. "Couldn't I get one of those Tin Man cycles or something? I really like those cycles." She did, too. The 'quick response vehicles' she's seen whipping around Central City were quickly becoming the younger princess's newest obsession, outshined only by the Tin Man she'd seen on one first.

Az supposed she couldn't totally blame her sister. There was something to be said about a Cain man moving at high speeds. At least, as opposed to the nearly glacial pace they set for other occasions, namely courting the Gale sisters. Az frowned. The 'Cain hot-and-cold method' of romance was definitely not one of her favorite things to think about. Shaking her head, she focused her attention back on her petulant sister. "Deeg, the cycles need paved roads or at least flat ground. Let's be honest with ourselves, the O.Z. has rather little of either. Frankly, the Tin Men find the cycles are only really useful in Central City."

DG sighed. "Yeah yeah yeah, I get it. No fun and sexy cycles for me. So, horses?" She turned back to look unenthusiastically at the big bay gelding that a groom held before her. At least her Harley (as she'd re-named the horse after discovering he'd been named 'Munchkin' of all things) was no where near the size of Azkadellia's massive black destrier, Darkness. Her horse had been one of the very few things Az had refused to part with after the witch was destroyed, and as the stallion tended to bite anyone else who tried to ride him, few complained. Granted, there'd been some grumbling that only the witch could control the horse, but those had been silenced by the re-emergence of the Sorceress's head groom. He'd been frankly shocked at the affection between the pair, as apparently the witch had treated the animal as if he were just another machine, while the princess absolutely doted on him. DG highly doubted she'd grow to adore her horse in such a manner, but, who knew? She shrugged to herself before looking up at her sister. "What's first?"

Az smiled. It seemed her sister was finally going to be cooperative. "First, Gallan there is going to give you a leg up, and then you, little sister, are in my charge for the rest of the afternoon." That had been one of the conditions DG had insisted on: if she was stuck learning how to ride, then she wanted as few people watching her make a fool of herself as possible. Thus, Az, who even Cain had admitted was one of the strongest riders he'd ever seen, would be her only instructor, and their only guards would be Cain and Jeb, following close enough to keep their charges in sight but out of earshot.

Still serene upon Darkness, Az watched as DG was boosted up into the saddle without too much scrambling. Surprisingly, her sister didn't look too precarious. "Good Deeg. It looks like your motorcycle gave you a fairly decent seat. You need to sit up straighter, though."

Almost smiling now that she'd managed to safely mount, DG followed her direction, rolling her shoulders back a little. She carefully held the reins the same way she saw Az did and asked, "Like this?"

"Just drop your heels a bit. Good." Az nodded, watching as her sister carefully followed her instructions. "You'll need to keep that form, if at all possible. It'll help you stay more secure in the saddle once we get moving." She eyed DG, gauging her sister's confidence level. "Do you think you're up for taking this to the pasture now?"

DG flashed her a wry grin. "As long as we're just walking."

"Don't worry, Deeg. Even you can do that much." Az chuckled at her sister's wounded expression, and continued calling out instructions as they ventured out of the stable yard.

The lesson proceeded fairly uneventfully from there. By the time Azkadellia called a halt, DG was fairly confident that she could control her gelding at both a walk and a trot, though she was not exactly fond of the latter. She was even less fond, when, upon arriving back at the stables, she tried to dismount on her own. Her battered thigh muscles simply collapsed, leaving her clinging to her stirrup.

"Problem, little sister?" Az asked, voice saccharinely sweet. She only grinned wickedly at her sister's groan. "Don't worry, Deeg, you'll find your rhythm soon enough. You just haven't used those muscles before."

DG rolled her eyes at her sister. "I'll have you know that I had no complaints about my 'rhythm,' thank you very much. And it's not that I haven't used them, Az, it's that I haven't used them in longer than I ever want to admit." She turned her glare on Harley. "And I'm pretty sure my, uh, steed at the time was a helluva lot better looking, too." Azkadellia fought back an un-lady-like snort.

A young and faintly mischievous voice called out from behind them, startling both sisters. "Who's better looking than who, now, Princess? Someone I know?" Jeb Cain and his father exchanged baffled looks as both princesses dissolved into helpless hysterical laughter against their respective horse's shoulder and silently thanked Ozma that neither Cain man had apparently heard what preceded that moment in the conversation.

**Just to let all of you know that might not have seen it one my profile- I have started a personal crusade to flesh out the Boomtown category here at FFn. If you've got the same Neal fetish I do, you should definitely check out those stories and help by writing MOAR! lol**


	5. What the hell?

**More to blame on Celia Stanton. Not that I mind!**

**Anyway, this set of sentences is obviously going to be focused on DG and Azkadellia as the rest of Girl Talk has been. I hope you enjoy them!**

**(BTW, if you still think I own Tin Man, there's a bridge across the crack in the O.Z. I'd like to sell you)**

**01. Mortal **

It was not exactly easy living in the shadow of a sister who was both exotic and voluptuous enough to pass for a Mortal Kombat wannabe, but DG supposed her sister made up for it with her sheer obliviousness to that fact.

**02. Broken **

Az edged her little sister behind her; they'd been in trouble before, but from the look on their mother's face, breaking the vase Daddy made was a whole 'nother barrel of mobats.

**03. Vanish **

It was amazing how easily a little make-up could hide the signs of yet another all night gossip-thon.

**04. Rain **

Az didn't really understand 'disco,' but when Deeg started singing something along the lines of 'It's Raining Men' at the first ball that the (surprisingly) handsome neighboring royals are invited as suitors, Az couldn't help but think it rather appropriate.

**05. Ocean **

There are many things she finds she cannot depend on, but her sister's love remains as sure as the tides.

**06. Tense **

DG does _not _like balls: especially without the aid of alcohol.

**07. Soon **

The two dark haired beauties comfort each other with claims that surely, surely the Cain men will get their heads out of their asses… eventually.

**08. Why **

It was a word almost expected of a small child, but one way or another, (as their parents were so often busy running the realm) it was always DG's sister who found herself coming up with answers.

**09. Winter **

The snows come, and DG discovers her sister barefoot in the gardens, reveling in the fact that she can finally feel the cold.

**10. Fallen **

Skinned knees and smashed fingers, dirty feet and tousled curls; Deeg fell down again—can Az come pick her up?

**11. Storm **

"What the hell kind of sense does throwing yourself into a twister _ever_ make?" DG grouses as her sister patiently explains the logic behind Travel Storms yet again.

**12. Door **

Cain could only watch as his teary-eyed princess threw herself at the locked door; Az wouldn't let her in, and DG refused to let him help her.

**13. Flash **

Lightning strikes, waking her from a dead sleep, but that tiny hand grips her own, and together they drift off again.

**14. Wait **

Azkadellia rolled her eyes; Deeg was quite possibly the most impatient person she'd ever met, which, considering the men 'Az' associated with for a while, was saying quite a bit.

**15. Shrine **

She'd never been religious, but now, gazing upon the Falls of Galinda with her sister's hand on her shoulder, Az feels a peace she's long since thought out of reach.

**16. Black**

Jeb tried not to stare at the intoxicating glints of purple in the princess's dark eyes, but he finds it's almost impossible to resist.

**17. Lost **

"No, we're not," Az insisted as she tugged her sister along, "we're merely… turned around."

**18. Cell **

It wasn't often that DG found something she knew more about than her sister, but when Glitch managed to invent a MMSIS (Multi Microscopic Sensory Imaging System), she found herself gleefully teaching an informal biology session.

**19. Villain **

Trying desperately to keep from laughing uproariously in the middle of Lady Falderol's oh-so-sincere toast to her 'lovely young charges,' Deeg mused that her sister (whose sly comment on the state of said Lady's bustle had nearly caused the younger princess to swallow her tongue) was still a wicked, wicked woman.

**20. Road**

Despite their parents' misgivings and the protests of both of their blue-eyed guards, DG snuck her sister out of the palace and to her very first driving test; both women had deemed that moment too important to the elder princess's independence to let anyone get in the way.

**21. Weep **

It's a pact they keep: since that night on the tower, when they finally reached out for each other again, they have forced themselves to smile whenever they feel the tears start.

**22. Blind **

It was clear evidence of the trust they held between them that Deeg could lead her sister blindfolded throughout the palace and gardens without Az ever feeling helpless.

**23. Pact **

There's something comforting in discovering that apparently the 'pinky swear' was universal.

**24. Flight **

It's been centuries since any witch or wizard has managed the feat, but, as the wind picks up and the dark haired princesses shoot matching grins at each other, they spread their arms wide and embrace their desire to thoroughly defy gravity.

**25. Hard **

Forgiveness might be inevitable between them, but that doesn't mean it will always be easy.

**26. War **

Their friends quickly learned to keep their distance when the two sisters whipped out a deck of cards; the pair could get rather violent about their 'friendly little competitions.'

**27. Deed **

They held the document carefully between them; it had taken a great deal of work (and more than a few illegal acts that they were not going to admit to Mother) but the tiny house in one of the remotest corners of the O.Z. was now theirs in name and deed, and they would always have one place where they could just be themselves, as opposed to daughters of the House of Gale.

**28. Unknown **

Az peered at the sheet of paper, almost wishing for a pair of spectacles; DG's handwriting was flat atrocious, and her sister had no idea what the note actually said.

**29. Deep **

DG is sure that nowhere in all the depth and breadth of the O.Z. could anyone find a woman more resilient than her tortured sister.

**30. Sudden **

When the slimy Count Valgon boldly stated that his household was preparing the honeymoon suit as they spoke, DG came to her horrified sister's rescue, graciously asking (all the while looking for a nice heavy stick) that he excuse the pair as his 'proposal' was just so sudden, and would have to be discussed by all members of the royal family.

**31. Dread **

Both princesses agreed (upon a thorough study of a portrait painted prior to the Sorceress's reign) that they much preferred Glitch's current hairstyle to the freaky comb over he'd had before.

**32. Burn **

Her shoulders might be red and peeling, but Az felt the afternoon she'd spent swimming with her sister more than worth it.

**33. Clock **

The O.Z. didn't have cuckoo birds, so the fact that they still had cuckoo clocks was quite the quandary.

**34. Words **

DG mused that Scrabble was much more of a challenge when she really didn't know if the terms like 'gluglug' (apparently a slightly sweeter version of muglug) and 'bunnybury' (technicolor rabbits?) actually were words in the O.Z.ian dictionary or if her sister has simply made them up.

**35. Fast **

One Tin Man and a Captain of the Royal Army were very nearly sent ass over teakettle when two blurs shoved past them in the hall, one of whom was heard screaming something frighteningly like "Don't make me get my flying mobats!"

**36. Three **

Az barely paused for a breath before coming to her final set of instructions for her less than diplomatic sister, "And third, you must _not _refer to the Eastern Guild as lawn gnomes, techicolor turkeys, or anything else along those lines: apparently, they find that offensive."

**37. Place **

Even after the hours of memorization with her obnoxious Etiquette Mistress, DG is still completely confused by the masses of silverware on either side of the place setting in front of her; it's only by carefully scrutinizing the deliberate movements of her sister that she manages to keep from making a fool of herself.

**38. Irony **

It makes a strange sort of sense that the princess drawn to dark should have such a bright and beautiful smile.

**39. Sky **

There was a balcony outside of DG's room, and neither sister could rightly count the hours they'd spent relearning the O.Z.'s stars.

**40. Closet **

In retrospect, hiding from their far too enthusiastic seamstresses in Az's closest might have been a tactical error.

**41. Real **

Most of the time, DG can't help but feel like she's just waiting to wake up back in her attic room in Kansas.

**42. Fair **

The first time DG encounters one of the bespelled mirrors in the Central City palace, Az overhears her chanting something about the 'fairest of them all' and wonders when her sister suddenly became so vain.

**43. Knot **

Among the few skills that Az did not retain from her years as the Sorceress is the ability to force her dark tresses into those elaborate feats of architecture; both DG and their mother are undeniably grateful.

**44. Low **

"Cold!" she squealed as the snow slowly melted down the inside of her dress; even for Deeg, that was just low.

**45. Well **

Az was fairly sure that Tutor (who'd scampered up to warn them of a possible Long Coat threat) was just as confused as she was at her sister's hysterical muttering about some poor boy named Timmy who had apparently fallen down a well.

**46. Token **

Deeg shoots her sister a grateful look, as, with an exceptional poker face that apparently even an angry Wyatt Cain is fooled by, Azkadellia calmly explains that the sapphire necklace (that exactly matched DG's eyes as one exceptionally brave suitor probably intended) was one she'd misplaced months before.

**47. Ugly **

DG insists that she is _not _the pretty one, no matter what her sister may say.

**48. Lure **

Az stared at the squirming form in the bucket before gingerly reaching in to grab it, all the while wondering how in the hells her sister had convinced her to go fishing.

**49. Drink **

It's a measure of how similar the sisters are that a certain shade of blue can now set both of their mouths to watering, desperate to quench that thirst.

**50. Dust**

Az giggled at her sister's frankly baffled expression as the blue-eyed girl began to float toward the ceiling; really, what had she expected pixie dust to do?

**Reviews as always are love!**


	6. Check?

**Here's a short little Az-centric snippet for all of you in the midst of my relative absense. I hope you like it! The 'Checklist' concept was actually borrowed from my buddy GT Spuddie. So compliments to them if you like the concept!**

**Again, Az and Tin Man is NOT mine. Le sigh.**

The dark haired young woman surveyed her closet with a faintly ironic eye.

Pastel, pastel, pastel, leather—wait what was that still doing there? She removed the leather bustier and tossed it aside. One of the other maids would deal with _that_. She returned to her study. She had to make a selection, sometime before noon preferably. After a moment she did and allowed the hovering maids to aid her in putting the complicated series of garments on her royal person. Thus dressed, she turned to survey herself in the mirror, and double check that she was indeed ready for the ordeal ahead.

Undergarments of the feminine, lacy, and all together unthreatening variety? Check.

Gown both demure and understatedly elegant? Check.

Hair flowing loose from any architectural bindings? Check (and thank Ozma for that one.)

Face only barely made up in soft pinks and pale roses? Check.

Eyes as un-sorrowful as could possibly be faked so early in the day? Check

Shoes containing absolutely no platform qualities what so ever? Check, check, and check.

She seemed ready, she thought. Still, something was missing. She turned and crossed carefully to her dressing table, and removed a large emerald on an unadorned chain.

Ah yes, that was it.

Symbol of my right to sill be alive and standing at her sister and mother's side? Check.

Steadying her nerves and layering on one last bit of artifice in the form of a small gentle smile that left no sign of her true agitation upon her face, Azkadellia nodded for her doors to be opened.

At last, she was ready for another day in the court of the O.Z.

**Reviews are love!**


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